title: Short-term storage of tripronucleated human embryos.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the survival and subsequent in vitro development of human cleavage stage embryos and hatched blastocysts following varying periods of short-term storage at 4 °C, using tripronucleated human embryos (TPN) as a model.
  
  
  METHODS
  TPN cleavage embryos and hatched blastocysts short-term stored at 4 °C for 0 h (control), 24 h and 48 h. The main outcome measures were: survival rates (SR) and in vitro developmental ability (blastocyst rate and blastocyst-re-expansion rate) in each of the groups after storage.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Cleavage-stage TPN survived at comparable rates to controls, regardless of storage time (average: 97.3 %). The in vitro development of cleavage-stage TPN stored for 24 h was comparable to that of controls (average 64.7 %), but was significantly impaired when storage lasted 48-h (20.8 %). After artificial shrinkage, SR was comparable in 24-h-stored and non-stored hatched blastocysts (85.7 %; p > 0.05), but was significantly impaired in the 48-h-stored group (20.0 %). Following 24-h storage, the re-expansion rate of hatched blastocysts was similar to that of controls (average: 57.1 %; p > 0.05), but was higher than that of the 48-h-stored group (15.0 %; p < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  TPN human cleavage embryos and blastocysts can be successfully stored short-term for up to 24 h at 4 °C without using cryoprotectants without any significant negative impact on survival or subsequent in vitro development.
authors.affiliation: Universitary Institute IVI Valencia, Valencia, Spain.
authors.forename: Noelia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Grau
authors.forename: Belén
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Aparicio
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Escrich
authors.forename: Amparo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mercader
authors.forename: Arantzazu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Delgado
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Remohí
authors.forename: María-José
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Escribá
mesh_terms: D001755:Blastocyst / Q000166:cytology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D046149:Embryo Culture Techniques; D047108:Embryonic Development; D006801:Humans; D027724:Reproductive Techniques, Assisted; D013997:Time Factors